Clinical and blood count findings in dogs naturally infected with Dirofilaria immitis
Dirofilaria immitis is a nematode that infects canids worldwide as well as other mammalian species, including humans. Worms and dogs are well adapted to one another, making dogs the best urban host for the parasite. Nevertheless, 30% of dogs do not sufficiently present microfilaremia, that is, the l...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Sociedade de Medicina Veterinária do Estado do Rio de Janeiro
2022-08-01
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| Series: | Brazilian Journal of Veterinary Medicine |
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| Online Access: | https://bjvm.org.br/BJVM/article/view/1256 |
| _version_ | 1797831818362224640 |
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| author | Alexandre José Rodrigues Bendas Bruno Alberigi Suzane Galardo Norma Labarthe Flavya Mendes-de-Almeida |
| author_facet | Alexandre José Rodrigues Bendas Bruno Alberigi Suzane Galardo Norma Labarthe Flavya Mendes-de-Almeida |
| author_sort | Alexandre José Rodrigues Bendas |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Dirofilaria immitis is a nematode that infects canids worldwide as well as other mammalian species, including humans. Worms and dogs are well adapted to one another, making dogs the best urban host for the parasite. Nevertheless, 30% of dogs do not sufficiently present microfilaremia, that is, the low larval load impairs transmission by mosquitoes and diagnosis by its detection in the blood samples. Therefore, the canine diagnosis must always include a microfilaria test and serological tests to detect adult worm antigens. To describe the clinical findings in naturally infected dogs in Rio de Janeiro, 34 dogs were included in the study. All dogs were evaluated for history, anamnesis, physical examination, complete blood count (CBC), D. immitis testing for antigens (ELISA test SNAP 4Dx Plus®), and microfilarial burden. The most frequent complaint from the owners was coughing (14.7%, 5/34). The most common CBC finding was eosinophilia (29.4%), followed by thrombocytopenia (26.5%) and neutrophilia (14.7%). Of the 34 animals, 91.2% were microfilaremic, with a mean count of 11.939 microfilaria/mL. Veterinarians working in areas endemic to D. immitis should always undergo screening tests and pulmonary auscultation, and increased expiratory sounds, even in the absence of coughing, can be considered a sign of the disease, along with eosinophilia, thrombocytopenia, and neutrophilia. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-09T13:57:49Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-69f5e26d5ee6432faa44386ee4337aba |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0100-2430 2527-2179 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-09T13:57:49Z |
| publishDate | 2022-08-01 |
| publisher | Sociedade de Medicina Veterinária do Estado do Rio de Janeiro |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Brazilian Journal of Veterinary Medicine |
| spelling | doaj.art-69f5e26d5ee6432faa44386ee4337aba2023-05-07T12:41:28ZengSociedade de Medicina Veterinária do Estado do Rio de JaneiroBrazilian Journal of Veterinary Medicine0100-24302527-21792022-08-0144e001922e00192210.29374/2527-2179.bjvm0019221144Clinical and blood count findings in dogs naturally infected with Dirofilaria immitisAlexandre José Rodrigues Bendas0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4320-9923Bruno Alberigi1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5707-2203Suzane Galardo2https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8979-537XNorma Labarthe3https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0928-9018Flavya Mendes-de-Almeida4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8152-5057Veterinarian, DSc. Departamento de medicina e cirurgia veterinária (DMCV), Instituto de Veterinária (IV), Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro (UFRRJ). Campus Seropédica, RJ, Brazil. Veterinarian, DSc. DMCV, IV, UFRRJ. Campus Seropédica, RJ, Brazil. Veterinarian, Autonomus, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil Veterinarian, DSc. Programa de Pós-Graduação Bioética, Ética Aplicada e Saúde Coletiva (PPGBios), Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil Veterinarian, DSc. Departamento de Patologia e Clínica Veterinária (MCV), Faculdade de Veterinária, Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF), Niterói, RJ, Brazil.Dirofilaria immitis is a nematode that infects canids worldwide as well as other mammalian species, including humans. Worms and dogs are well adapted to one another, making dogs the best urban host for the parasite. Nevertheless, 30% of dogs do not sufficiently present microfilaremia, that is, the low larval load impairs transmission by mosquitoes and diagnosis by its detection in the blood samples. Therefore, the canine diagnosis must always include a microfilaria test and serological tests to detect adult worm antigens. To describe the clinical findings in naturally infected dogs in Rio de Janeiro, 34 dogs were included in the study. All dogs were evaluated for history, anamnesis, physical examination, complete blood count (CBC), D. immitis testing for antigens (ELISA test SNAP 4Dx Plus®), and microfilarial burden. The most frequent complaint from the owners was coughing (14.7%, 5/34). The most common CBC finding was eosinophilia (29.4%), followed by thrombocytopenia (26.5%) and neutrophilia (14.7%). Of the 34 animals, 91.2% were microfilaremic, with a mean count of 11.939 microfilaria/mL. Veterinarians working in areas endemic to D. immitis should always undergo screening tests and pulmonary auscultation, and increased expiratory sounds, even in the absence of coughing, can be considered a sign of the disease, along with eosinophilia, thrombocytopenia, and neutrophilia.https://bjvm.org.br/BJVM/article/view/1256heartworm, clinical signs, complete blood count, lung inflammation. |
| spellingShingle | Alexandre José Rodrigues Bendas Bruno Alberigi Suzane Galardo Norma Labarthe Flavya Mendes-de-Almeida Clinical and blood count findings in dogs naturally infected with Dirofilaria immitis Brazilian Journal of Veterinary Medicine heartworm, clinical signs, complete blood count, lung inflammation. |
| title | Clinical and blood count findings in dogs naturally infected with Dirofilaria immitis |
| title_full | Clinical and blood count findings in dogs naturally infected with Dirofilaria immitis |
| title_fullStr | Clinical and blood count findings in dogs naturally infected with Dirofilaria immitis |
| title_full_unstemmed | Clinical and blood count findings in dogs naturally infected with Dirofilaria immitis |
| title_short | Clinical and blood count findings in dogs naturally infected with Dirofilaria immitis |
| title_sort | clinical and blood count findings in dogs naturally infected with dirofilaria immitis |
| topic | heartworm, clinical signs, complete blood count, lung inflammation. |
| url | https://bjvm.org.br/BJVM/article/view/1256 |
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